Follow these steps in order to begin a New Life with Jesus Christ this day:

STEP ONE- Recognize the real problem: sin and separation:

We were created to know, love, and glorify God. When we choose to go our own way, living life in willful disobedience to God, we are choosing to be separated from God both now and for all eternity.

The Bible says we are sinners…

"For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."
Romans 3:23

STEP TWO - Understand that we cannot save ourselves:

Because God is Holy, He cannot allow sin to enter into Heaven.

Most people attempt to save themselves by their own efforts, good works, or church attendance. The Bible says…

"There is a way that seems right unto man, but in the end it leads to death." Proverbs 14:12

How then can a sinful person enter Heaven where God allows no sin?

STEP THREE - Receive the unmerited love of God through Jesus:

But God is love…

"For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life."
John 3:16

God is also just…

"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 6:23

STEP FOUR - Trust that we are saved by grace:

The good news is… in spite of our sin, Christ died for us.

"By grace you have been saved through faith, and not of yourself; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast."
Ephesians 2:8-9

"But God demonstrates His own love for us in this; while we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
Romans 5:8

STEP FIVE - Respond to God's gift by faith:

"If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."
Romans 10:9

If you would like to accept Jesus as Lord of your life, you can pray the following prayer:

Lord, I confess that I have sinned against you and I'm asking for your forgiveness. I am aware that all of my wrong doing was against you and you only. I acknowledge that I could never earn salvation by merely my good works, but I come to you right now by faith and trust in your saving grace that you displayed on that cross for me. I believe that Jesus died and rose again so that I can be free, forgiven, and a permanent part of Your family. I ask you to come into my heart and make me whole and I surrender my entire life over to you by faith. In Jesus name, Amen.

Do You Know JESUS CHRIST?

Do you know Jesus Christ? Many have heard of Jesus and know a little about Him. Many sing songs about His birth at Christmas and know that Easter commemorates His resurrection. Some think of Him as a teacher or perhaps the founder of a major world religion. But, do you know Him personally? Do you know thatJesus died and rose again, not to start a spiritual movement, but because He loves you and wanted to provide a wayfor you to know Him?

The Bible tells the story of God's love for people. In the beginning,God created us to reflect His image and to have a relationship with Him (Genesis 1:27). We were created good but sin entered the world and we essentially chose to try life on our own without God, instead of living our lives for God as we were designed.

God loves us so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to die on the cross to pay the price for our sins and bring us into a relationship with Him. Jesus' resurrection is proof that we are now accepted and made right by Jesus. We can know the promise of eternal life and experience the joy of knowing God here on earth!

If you would like to have a relationship with God, the Bible tells us that we begin by acknowledging that we have sinned and that there is nothing we can do to earn our way into God's love (Romans 3:23-26). We believe and confess that Jesus is Lord (Romans 10:9) and allow Him to guide our lives. Where we once wanted to control our own futures, we now allow Jesus into our hearts to be our Lord.

Knowing God's peace, perspective, and purpose for your life begins with a personal relationship with Christ.

How do we really know that Jesus is the Son of God?

How do we really know that Jesus is the Son of God?

How do we really know that Jesus is the son of God? Did Jesus ever say, "I am God" in those words? Those words are not recorded in the Bible. However, Jesus did proclaim His deity. For instance, in John 10:30, Jesus said, "I and My Father are one." How did His audience react to His words? "The Jews answered Him, saying, 'For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God'" (John 10:33). They understood that Jesus claimed to be God.

You can read another example in John 8:58, "Jesus said to them, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.'" The Jews picked up stones and wanted to stone Jesus. The Jews believed Jesus' statement to be blasphemy. They understood that Jesus claimed to be God!

Thomas, Jesus' disciple said, "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28). You will see that Jesus doesn't correct him.

In the Bible, Jesus often receives worship. For example, Matthew 2:11 says, "And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh." (See also Matthew 14:33; 28:9, 17; Luke 24:52; John 9:38).

Is Jesus man or God? It is essential to believe that Jesus is God! Jesus has to be God for His death to be sufficient to pay the penalty for the sins of the world. 1 John 2:2 says, "And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world." Only Jesus, who is God, could pay such an infinite price!

Since Jesus is God, when did He realize it? Jesus realized who He was from eternity past. Consider these verses:

John 8:58 - "'I tell you the truth,' Jesus answered, 'before Abraham was born, I AM!'"

Genesis 1:26 - "Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.'"

John 17:5 - "And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began."

Revelation 13:8 - "All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast - all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world."

Even as a child, Jesus was aware He was preparing to finish the work of His Father. In Luke 2:49 Jesus says, "Why were you searching for me . . . Didn't you know I had to be in my Father's house?" Later in Luke, it reads "And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men."

If Jesus knew everything, He would not need to "grow in wisdom." Jesus needed to grow physically. He also voluntarily put himself in a position to gain knowledge as a human. Yes, Jesus was still God. Theology refers to this as the hypostatic union. (Hypostatic union means the union of two natures - God and man.)

Is Jesus God? Yes, and He has known from eternity past that He is God.

Ask yourself, "Do I believe that Jesus is God?" and "What are the reasons why I should believe that Jesus is God?" No legitimate historian denies that Jesus lived on earth, but it is up to you to decide for yourself whether Jesus is God in your life.

Continue Answering the Question - Is Jesus God?

Who Is God?

Who Is God - Who Does He Claim to Be?
Who is God? He's been described as everything from an impersonal life-force to a benevolent, personal, almighty Creator. He has been called by many names, including: "Zeus," "Jupiter," "Brahma," "Allah," "Ra," "Odin," "Ashur," "Izanagi," "Viracocha," "Ahura Mazda," and "the Great Spirit" to name just a few. He's seen by some as "Mother Nature" and by others as "Father God." But who is He really? Who does He claim to be?

Who Is God - Father God or Mother Nature?
Who is God? What has He revealed about Himself? To begin with, whenever He refers to Himself in parental terms, He always addresses Himself as "Father," never "Mother." He calls Himself "a Father to Israel,"¹and in one instance, when His "children" were particularly disrespectful to Him, He said to them, "A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence?" ²

His prophets acknowledged Him as Father by saying, "You are our Father, we are the clay, and You our potter; And all of us are the work of Your hand,"³ and "do we not all have one Father? Has not one God created us?"⁴ Never once does God refer to Himself as "Mother" and never once is He called such by the prophets to whom He spoke. Calling God "Mother Nature" is comparable to calling your earthly father "Mom."

Who Is God - What Does God Care About?
Who is God in terms of moral attributes? What does God have to say about Himself in this regard? He says that He delights in justice and righteousness: "…Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight."⁵ "For I, the LORD, love justice; I hate robbery and iniquity…"⁶

Justice and equity are very important to God. But so are grace and mercy. And so, while God will hold everyone accountable, each for their own lives, He extends His grace to the repentant sinner. He promises that, "'If the wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed and observes all My statutes and practices justice and righteousness, he shall surely live; he shall not die. All his transgressions which he has committed will not be remembered against him; because of his righteousness which he has practiced, he will live. Do I have any pleasure in the death of the wicked,' declares the Lord GOD, 'rather than that he should turn from his ways and live?…I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,' declares the Lord GOD. 'Therefore, repent and live.'"⁷

By "death" God is not referring to the physical death which we might have in mind. Rather, God is referring to something which will happen in eternity, after our physical deaths. The Scriptures refer to this event as the "second death."⁸ The first death separates us from our bodies and takes us from this world. The second death is different. It also entails a separation, but it's the separation of one group of people from another: the righteous and the forgiven on one hand and the wicked and the unrepentant on the other. The two groups will be judged separately.

The one group will be rewarded according to the good that they've done. Their evil deeds will be overlooked, forgiven by God. The other group will be judged according to the evil that they have done, and their good deeds will not keep them from their punishment. God says, "When a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity and dies because of it, for his iniquity which he has committed he will die." But "when a wicked man turns away from his wickedness which he has committed and practices justice and righteousness, he will save his life. Because he considered and turned away from all his transgressions which he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. …Therefore, repent and live."⁹ In this way, God will see that justice ultimately prevails, but that mercy is given to the humble and the repentant.

God has made a provision for those who want to repent, a provision to atone for the sins of those who want to be made right with Him. He sent a "Messiah," a Servant who willingly suffered and died a vicarious death in order to pay for the sins of those who would repent and trust in Him. The Scriptures say, "Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?…Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows…He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.…it was the LORD's will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer, and though the LORD makes His life a guilt offering, He will see His offspring and prolong His days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in His hand. After the suffering of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.…he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." ¹⁰

^{Learn More about Messiah}

You decide what fruit you are

Psalm 1:1-4

“Blessed is the man who does now walk in the counsel of the wicked. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away.”

Matthew 12:33

“Today is the day to stop thinking you are the victim. If your tree is producing crab apples, then change it. Jesus said “either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruits bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.”

It doesn’t matter what kind of life you have lived because you are in control of your destiny. If you have lived even the most sinful life, doubted and didn’t believe in God, you can change your ways.

Like it says in Matthew 12, even if your fruit has been bad until now, TODAY you can make a decision to change it for the better good. You can breakthrough with God in whatever kind of lifestyle, situation, problems you are in right now. The only thing stopping us is continuing to live a life of sin and a lack of vision.

1. God has a vision for each and every one of us, without one, we will perish

2. Our vision is our future

3. We can change any negative vision or lifestyle into a positive one

Embrace Change

Matthew 18:3

“I tell you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Romans 8:28

“All we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him who have been called according to his purpose.”

The sun. One of the many splendors that God created. It rises through the darkness and shines throughout the land and sets after a long day. The sun can mark a transition point in our lives.

Let’s start with the sunset. The light fades into darkness and this could reflect how we turned away from God and lived in the darkness of the world and valued whatever it gave us more than the Word. Then over time, we realize how dull and boring the world can be, and with a breakthrough and change of life, darkness falls and the sun rises. We rise to a new day and lifestyle.

As we transition from the point in our lives where we were distant from God and our vision seemed either irrelevant or nonexistent to getting to know Him better, we must become and remain moldable. Let our hearts be molded into His word. God is the potter and we are His clay and if we are to achieve greatness, we must live (to the best of our ability) as Jesus did. When we embrace change, God reveals himself to us and makes the vision for our lives more apparent.

Jesus Loves You

A Muslim Man's AMAZING Testimony about Jesus (1 of 2)

A Muslim Man's AMAZING Testimony about Jesus (2 of 2)

Change

Jesus says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Matthew 24:35)

Your life is constantly moving, changing, evolving, flowing. Circumstances come and go. Some of the events in your life are painful and others joyous and fun. This is the nature of living in the world. You experience the world through the lens of your eye, the drum of your ear, and the physical sensations of your body. The constant change you perceive through your senses is the source of great suffering, great unhappiness, and fear. The natural tendency is to look to the past or the future to find some happiness, success, and fulfillment—the endless grasping for happiness that always seems just out of your reach. There is always something else to pursue a goal, a dream, an idea that will provide the happiness that you long for deep down in the depths of your being. Rare is the one who stops this endless looking to the past or the future. Rare is the one who stops to see that which never changes never moves and is constantly offering you lasting happiness, fulfillment and, more importantly, a love that is so vast so indescrible it offers you the endless joy of your true nature.

Jesus says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” (Matthew 24:35) What is the word of Jesus? Are they just words that he speaks or words in a book or do his words point to something much deeper? Where do his word direct your attention? Right now I am traveling through Australia on tour with Gangaji and her husband Eli. Since arriving here I have met some of the most deeply loving people, people who are aware of a great secret—the great secret of Life. In the many meetings I have attended here the common conversation is the story of life, the story of suffering that is always based on what happened in the past or what might happen in the future. Many of these stories are deeply heartbreaking, exposing the deep suffering that people experience in life. Each person has different experiences and circumstances that have appeared in their life, but ultimately it is the very same story you are telling yourself everyday. The endless story of your life is the layer that hides the deepest secret, a secret that is waiting to be discovered deep inside of you. Once this secret is discovered there is a great release into a natural joyous freedom. How can knowing this ancient secret help you to understand the teaching of Jesus on an even deeper level?

Jesus says, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.” (Luke 13:11-13) Do the things that you own offer you any lasting happiness? What will happen to even your most prized possession at the time of your death, will you take it with you? Who is the one who has and who is the one who has not? Is he talking about possessions or something much deeper? Who is it that does not hear and who is it that deeply hears?

Jesus explains, “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” (Matthew 6:32) This is the secret of the great secret of God—the great secret of true fulfillment. If you know the truth of who you are, if you stop and see the deathless spirit within your own heart, you will be more abundant, more wealthy than the wealthiest man or woman of earth. You will know that which is eternal and know it to be the truth of who you are. This cannot remain conceptual for it to have any lasting value you must stop and ask yourself—Who is it that hears? Who is it that sees? Who is it that understands?

Jesus says, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:24) If for a moment you stop paying attention to your thoughts of the past or your thoughts of the future, what do you experience? What do you notice? The common experience is to try and cling to the good experiences of life and get rid of or avoid the bad experiences in life. But this endless clinging to and avoidance of is the source of deep suffering throughout the world.

What exactly are you telling yourself about yourself or others? Does this endless conversation you are having inside your own head offer you any peace, any happiness? This does not mean you should try and stay focused on the present moment. Trying to stay in the moment is another trick of your mind. You are the moment. The moment is always here whether you are aware of it or not. The endless freedom of the moment reveals itself when you simply, very simply, stop talking to yourself.

Rumi says, “Christ is the population of the world and every object as well. There is no room for hypocrisy Why use bitter soup for healing, when sweet water is everywhere. Lovers think they are looking for each other, but there is only one search. Wandering this world is wandering that, both inside one transparent sky. In here there is no dogma and no heresy. The miracle of Jesus is himself. Not what he said or did about the future, forget the future, I’d worship someone who could do that.

Rumi says, “Christ is the population of the world and every object as well. There is no room for hypocrisy Why use bitter soup for healing, when sweet water is everywhere. Lovers think they are looking for each other, but there is only one search. Wandering this world is wandering that, both inside one transparent sky. In here there is no dogma and no heresy. The miracle of Jesus is himself. Not what he said or did about the future, forget the future, I’d worship someone who could do that.

Rumi continues, “On the way you may want to look back or not, but if you can say there is nothing ahead there will be nothing there. Stretch your arms and take hold the cloth of your clothes with both hands. The cure for pain is in the pain. Good and bad are mixed, if you don’t have both you don’t belong with us. When one of us gets lost, is not here, he must be inside us, there is no place like that anywhere in the world.”

Jesus explains, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” (Luke 9:62) When you focus your attention on the past it is like living your life looking in a rear view mirror or looking at a mirage in the desert. Is that past real right now in this moment? Looking at the past or the future hides what is always here, it hides that which never changes, is always constant, always present. Pain is part of life, but suffering is the story you are telling yourself about the pain you experience in life. Suffering is complex and it has to be practiced to continue.

The cure for suffering resides in the pain. It is the fear, anger, or hysteria that you are avoiding that hides the truth of who you are at the core of your being. Instead of avoiding the pain, penetrate the pain or fear, or any emotion you are experiencing with your awareness and discover what is at the core—What do you experience when you meet any emotion, when you allow yourself to full immerse yourself in it, not by acting it our or suppressing it, but by allowing yourself to become it? What happens when you take the label ‘fear’ or ‘sadness off the emotion? What do you experience if it has no label, no story?

Jesus illuminates, “And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins.” (Luke 5:37) The new wine is the essence of your life the life force that beats your heart. If you pour your life energy into your story you will suffer, it destroys your life or the wine skin will burst. If you remain aware of this life force and stop touching your story you are free from this endless suffering, you will be free from the endless commentary of your own mind—new wine in new wine skins.

Discovering this secret for yourself is the key that frees you from the prison of you own thoughts. This ancient secret, the key to true lasting fulfillment, can only occur when you stop and look where Jesus is pointing.

You are life. You are free. You are eternal. You are the deathless spirit. Discover that which is free from all thought, all emotions and all sensations—You are That eternal Freedom—the doorway to the Kingdom of God!

True abundance has nothing to do with the things of this world. It has nothing to do with any emotion or feeling. In Truth, you are endlessly wealthy, endlessly abundant. You are Love itself and that Love never ends! Wow!

Love is who you are. Love is the essence of Life. Love is the great secret of Life. Not the love of someone else, but the Love, the infinite Light that you are.

When Young Men Are Tempted: Sexual Purity For Guys In The Real World

his practical look at sexual purity is written directly to teens in a frank, accessible, and totally honest style to help them make decisions for sexual integrity. When Young Men Are Tempted discusses factors surrounding sexual temptation and presents a strategy to encourage and assist young men to lead morally pure lives. Author Bill Perkins offers success stories as well as testimonies of false solutions. Readers will:
- Understand why "wrong" things seem so "right" and how sexual appetites get out of control
- Learn to filter and deal with the elements of teens' pop culture work
- Find freedom to confront and defeat the demons of sexual compromise, bad habits, and feelings of guilt-breaking addictive cycles
- User-friendly ways to make healthy decisions and act on them.
- Discover strategies for ongoing victory
Upside-down. Turned around. Sound like a typical day for you? invert books meet you where you are-in the twisted, flipped around places in your life. You've got so many relationships to focus on-God, others, and even yourself-invert books will help you figure out how to give yourself fully to all of them. invert tackles the difficult topics that are important to you-and will help you turn to focus on God more clearly.

Bill Perkins has contributed to When Young Men Are Tempted: Sexual Purity for Guys in the Real World as an author. Bill Perkins is the founder and president of White Horse Ministries and the Million Mighty Men Movement. Currently, he is teaching pastor at Coast Hills Community Church in McMinnville, OR, and regularly addresses business seminars and men's groups. Perkins is the author of the bestselling When Good Men Are Tempted, and has authored or collaborated on many other books including Fatal Attractions... Over-coming Our Secret Addictions; Awaken the Leader Within; Kids in Sports; and Lessons from a Dream Maker.
Bill Perkins es fundador y presidente de Million Mighty Men (www.MillionMightyMen.co )